Amid 'fight for freedom,' Armengau seeks delay in law-license case

Arguing he is "fighting for his very freedom" in a sex-charges trial, Columbus lawyer Javier Armengau asked the Ohio Supreme Court yesterday to delay any proceedings to strip him of his law license.

Randy Ludlow, The Columbus Dispatch

Arguing he is “fighting for his very freedom” in a sex-charges trial, Columbus lawyer Javier Armengau asked the Ohio Supreme Court yesterday to delay any proceedings to strip him of his law license.

In an unusual motion, the Ohio State Bar Association asked the justices on Monday to immediately suspend Armengau, bypassing the court’s normal disciplinary process.

The court ordered Armengau to respond to the bar association’s motion by Friday, prompting his request for a stay.

In his filing, Frederick Benton Jr., Armengau’s attorney, asked the high court to delay any action until his client’s trial in Franklin County Common Pleas Court is finished.

Armengau “faces an impossible challenge. He cannot realistically fight for his very freedom while simultaneously answer(ing) this proposed sanction,” Benton wrote.

The bar association responded this morning that the public interest would be harmed by delaying the requested proceedings and that they would not compromise Armengau's trial.

The bar association claims that “Armengau is a lawyer out of control, and he should not be allowed to continue on his reckless course unabated.”

The filing accuses Armengau of many conflicts of interest in handling criminal cases, improperly keeping legal fees he has not earned and commingling his personal funds with clients’ money placed in trust.

It also alleges sexual affairs with two prior female clients, a mother and daughter, who are not involved in his trial. The affair with the daughter began when she was 17, the bar association claims. Armengau denies the charges.